Toys for use in Griffiths Mental Development Scale, United Kingdom, 1984

Credits: National Railway Museum

Children from birth to two years-old were tested using these objects. They form part of the Griffiths Mental Development Scale. The complete test consists of 260 test items. It was designed by psychologist Ruth Griffiths in 1951. The test is split into five subscales: locomotor (physical movement), personal-social, hearing and speech, eye and hand, and performance. Doctors found the scale useful at assessing a child’s ability to perform certain tasks. The test was distributed by Test Agency Ltd. It was used by the Department of Clinical Psychology at Windsor Day Hospital, Liverpool, between 1971 and 2000.